motel void

A successful LA-based singer with a distinctive voice, ZZ Ward, has released her new album, Liberation, marking both her debut on the independent label Sun Records and a return to her deep-seated blues roots. After spending a decade with a major label, Ward chose to take a more independent path, allowing her to craft an album that feels raw, personal, and uninhibited.

One of the central themes of Liberation is motherhood, woven into the music in a way that feels deeply authentic and soaked in the spirit of the blues. Though she hadn’t initially planned to make an album centered around motherhood, the theme emerged naturally – as it always does for Ward – because she writes about what she’s living through.

“I used to care so much about what other people wanted my music to sound like, but after I became a mother, my priorities changed,” she explains.

Ward began singing blues at the age of eight, but throughout her career, she often had to make compromises to fit the expectations of the music industry. Now, freed from those constraints, she delivers an album that channels the raw emotion and grit reminiscent of some of the greatest voices in soul and blues history.

I couldn’t help but hear shades of Amy Winehouse on this record – especially in the second track My Baby Left Me. When it comes to other individual tracks, Love Alive stood out to me immediately. It was chosen as the lead single, and for good reason – Ward’s knack for crafting a catchy melody shines through, accompanied by her precise yet effortlessly raw and emotive delivery. “Having kids can really test your relationship. This song is about keeping the love alive during the trying times of early parenthood,” Ward shares about Love Alive.

Another standout for me was Sinner’s Prayer, where the blues piano merges beautifully with Ward’s vocals. Here she evokes another legend Nina Simone.

The production throughout the album feels organic and natural while still carrying a touch of modern polish. That modern edge is especially present in the album’s electrifying closer, Next to You, where driving drums, a powerful vocal performance, and a raw electric guitar, combined with a jazz-infused piano, push the track to a thrilling and satisfying finale.

Catchy, emotional, instrumentally and vocally precise, raw (that guitar in Grinnin’ In Your Face!), and infused with a strong blues atmosphere that transports you from today’s fast-paced world into dimly lit bars and clubs, where time seems to stand still, surrounded by unconventional characters and mysterious figures. That’s Liberation.

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